


Can’t Help Falling In Love

by AnchoredToTheWorld



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Angst, Confused Nicole, Doc is a gent, Earp sisters, Emotional, F/F, F/M, Feelings, Heartbreak, Lies, Lots of Crying, Love, Shae is so understanding, Waverly needs a hug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-09-27
Packaged: 2020-10-24 18:40:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20710703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnchoredToTheWorld/pseuds/AnchoredToTheWorld
Summary: Nicole and Waverly are the best of friends but what happens when Nicole finds love with another woman.How does Waverly react to the news of her best friends engagement and more importantly, how does she really feel.Nicole and Waverly were inseparable ever since meeting in high school, the perfect pairing if you asked any of their friends. However, Nicole and Waverly never risked losing their friendship so never got romantically involved and now it was all too late...or was it?





	1. Killing Me

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a thread of a prompt on twitter and this is my interpretation of the situation. I’m just starting out writing so I only did the best I could. 
> 
> Prompt - https://twitter.com/earpermica/status/1174571984136679430?s=21

Waverly was in her room picking out an outfit. She was meeting up with Nicole later that day. Nicole was going to see her girlfriend, Shae, that morning for a ‘talk’ as their relationship had been weird between the couple the past few months.

Nicole figured Shae was dancing around the idea of breaking up with her so wanted to have a talk with her and confront her about what was going on and why she was acting weird these past few months.

Waverly wanted to support and be there for Nicole when she got back from her talk with Shae. Poor Nicole. Another somewhat failed relationship. The brunette was always there to pick up the pieces of her best friend’s heartbreaks, she cared about her and loved her deeply.

Even though the pair loved and cared for each other, they never got romantically involved. They didn’t want to risk and lose what they had, it was too precious for either of them to lose so they agreed to never go there with each other.

It was Nicole that suggested that they never go there and Waverly had gone along with it, she didn’t want to lose what they had either.

Deep down though, Waverly was truly disappointed that her and the redhead would never be an item. It broke her heart. The brunette didn’t really have a choice though because she’d rather have Nicole in her life than not have her. The two had been inseparable as best friends ever since then. 

She couldn’t help falling for her best friend, I mean how could she not. She was kind, brave, and charming. The brunette had all these feelings towards the redhead but she knew she could never express them, so accepting the two of them as just friends would have to be good enough. Waverly told herself over and over that she was okay with just being friends with Nicole and she’d finally convinced herself enough to believe it, or so she thought. 

A text alert broke Waverly out of her thoughts.

Nicole : Hey, just about to go meet Shae.

Waverly : How are you feeling? How are you _really_ feeling?

Nicole : To be honest, I think I’m gonna come out of this talk without a girlfriend 😔 But...I’m looking forward to seeing you after because you always make me feel better ☺️

Waverly : I’ll be here for you, I’m always here for you Nicole. You know that, right?

Nicole : I know, I don’t know what I’d do without you Waves ❤️

Waverly : Listen, text me when you’re all done with the talk with Shae. I’ll meet you at your house and we can hang out, I’ll even bring some ice cream 😊

Nicole : I will! You’re the best! ☺️

Waverly : Good Luck ❤️

Nicole : ❤️

...

The brunette was currently putting together a care package for Nicole, she was bringing loads of supplies to help ease the predicted heartbreak.

As she was packing up the last of the supplies to take to Nicole’s, she received a text from the redhead.

Nicole : Um, just got done with the talk with. I’ll tell you about it when you get here, okay? See you then

Waverly shot a quick text back stating she was about to head over.

...

Waverly was currently driving over to Nicole’s house on the other side of town. She really felt for her best friend, she was just so unlucky in love.

Waverly knew that if she were with Nicole she’d _never_ hurt her, ever.

She drummed her fingers along to a song on the radio.

She didn’t know what state Nicole would be in when she got to her house, she just knew that she needed to be there for her best friend.

...

The brunette pulled up outside of Nicole’s house, it was a house in the _nice_ part of Purgatory.

She cut the engine and picked up the care package from the passenger seat and made her way to Nicole’s door.

Waverly pressed the doorbell and waited. She was prepared to be faced with a crying Nicole.

She heard Nicole making her way to the door and when the door swung open Waverly was met with a somewhat distant looking Nicole.

Waverly just tackled Nicole with a hug immediately and she felt the redhead melt into the hug. The brunette knew a hug would help ease the pain. 

...

The pair walked into Nicole’s living room. Waverly placed the care package on the coffee table and took off her jacket.

Nicole was quiet so Waverly just continued with getting all the blankets, movies and a tub of Nicole’s favorite ice cream out of the care package she’d brought her and started making everything comfortable for them.

When the brunette was done, she looked over at Nicole who had all of a sudden become nervous...

“You wanna talk about it?” Waverly asked softly.

“Yeah, I think we should”.

...

“So, you know how Shae has been a little distant these past few months and acting weird?”

“Yeah, she’s been acting super strange around all of us.” Waverly replied.

“Well...she told me why she’s been acting weird, distant.”

“She hasn’t been having an affair has she?! I’ll kill her if she has”

“No Waverly, she hasn’t been cheating on me. She’s um, actually been planning a proposal all this time.” Nicole said warely, her voice getting high pitched as she finished her sentence.

“What” Waverly answered confused.

“Turns out all the sneaking around was her making plans for a huge proposal. But since I ruined the surprise she just came out with it and asked me to marry her and I- I said yes.”

The sound of heartbreak. Waverly was absolutely heartbroken. Her chances of potentially getting together with Nicole were now no more.

The smaller woman realised she hadn’t spoken since Nicole dropped the news. So she plastered on a smile, hoping Nicole wouldn’t notice that it was fake.

“Oh Nicole, I’m so happy for you.” She managed to get out whilst pulling the redhead into a hug.

“Thank you, Waves. I’m still in shock, I really thought she was gonna break things off between us. It was such a surprise and hasn’t really sank in yet”

Waverly hugged Nicole tighter, trying her upmost best to hold back the flood of tears ready to fall at a moments notice.

“You deserve happiness Nicole” Waverly managed to say before her voice had the chance to break.

Waverly pulled out of the hug first and smiled at the redhead, Nicole smiled back.

“Have you got a ring?”

“Oh, yeah.” Nicole said as she put her left hand out for Waverly to see.

Waverly took Nicole’s hand in hers as she looked at the ring, it was beautiful. Just like Nicole she thought. “It’s beautiful, Nicole.”

  
Someone else gets to make her happy. Someone else gets to be held and kissed by her, the most caring person Waverly had ever met. Her thoughts were beginning to get carried away.

Nicole broke her out of her thoughts by saying “Are you okay Waves?”

Those four words were what caused Waverly’s tears to fall instantly. How would Waverly explain her tears to Nicole, she knew she had to come with something convincing and quick.

Nicole grew concerned and confused at the sight of Waverly’s tears.

“Happy tears” Waverly said in a chipper but sad voice as she began to wipe the tears away using the sleeve of her shirt.

Nicole’s face soon softened and she engulfed Waverly in her arms, Waverly immediately reciprocating as tears flowed freely onto Nicole’s shirt.

“I’m just really happy that you finally found someone” Waverly choked out between tears as she hugged Nicole tighter.

It killed Waverly to say those words, it should have been her and Nicole having the whole happily ever after.

It was going to be hard to come to terms with it but Waverly would rather hide her disappointment and act happy for her best friend than lose the precious friendship they had.

“Thanks Waves, it really means a lot coming from you. I don’t know what I’d do without you, I love you”

Waverly just closed her eyes as she hugged Nicole tighter, showing her acknowledgment of the redheads words.

”I love you too, Nicole” Waverly managed to choked out through the stream of tears. 

The pair stayed in their embrace. 

One of them left feeling on top of the world and filled with overwhelming happiness. 

The other, completely heartbroken and feeling like she’d just had her heart ripped out of her chest.

_Fin_


	2. Only Love Can Hurt Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Waverly tries to heal her heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your comments on the first chapter, it meant a lot. 
> 
> Here we are with the second instalment. 
> 
> p.s. I’m not gonna lie, my heart physically hurt as I wrote this chapter.

It was the morning after Nicole broke the news of her engagement to Shae.

When Waverly had left Nicole’s house yesterday, she’d gone straight home. She was determined not to cry on the drive home, she’d have her breakdown in the comfort of her own home rather than the side of the road in the middle of town.

As soon as she’d pulled into her driveway, she’d gotten straight out of her jeep and headed straight for the house.

The moment she’d closed the door behind herself, she immediately burst into tears. Her vision was blurred by the tears as she slid down against the door with her head in her hands. She sobbed with everything she had.

...

It was around mid-morning and Waverly was just starting to wake from one of the worst nights she’d ever experienced.

Her night had consisted of tears. She was up most of the night just crying. She eventually fell asleep after she’d sobbed so hard that it took all the energy out of her small frame.

Her pillow was soaked with tears. She’d never cried this much in all her life.

She propped herself up against the headboard as she looked at all the scattered tissues around her that she’d used to wipe away the heavy stream of tears that had seemed to be never ending.

Looking at all the tissues reminded her of yesterday and Waverly cried again, it felt like she hadn’t stopped crying since.

“Why am I crying?” She whispered to herself, giving herself some kind of talk.

...

The brunette had managed to drag herself out of bed and it was now around 1pm, it wasn’t like Waverly to stay in bed that late so you knew something was up.

She’d decided to take a shower to try and calm herself down, they usually removed any tension she had in her body and it would relax her.

Waverly had made her way into her en-suite bathroom, grabbing a towel on her way in.

She looked at herself in the mirror above the sink, really looked at herself. The brunette was met with the look of heartbreak, honest to god heartbreak.

Before she had the chance to get in her own head, she turned on the shower and began to undress.

As soon as she stood under the steady stream of water, she exhaled hard. The warmth of the water feeling like a well-needed hug. She needed all the comfort she could get after yesterday.

...

After the brunette was done showering, she threw on her favorite unicorn onesie. She decided she would have a day of self-care, that’s if her emotions didn’t get the best of her. She needed to look after her heart today, she needed to heal it before she got the chance to hang out with Nicole again.

Today would be a day where she would catch up on a few of her favorite shows. Her favorite shows always brought comfort to her when she was feeling down.

Before the brunette made her way downstairs to make herself a hot chocolate, she checked her phone.

*2 New Messages*

1 New Message from Wynonna  
1 New Message from Nicole

Wynonna’s message read “Hey babygirl, I miss you.”

The message caused a smile to break upon her face. Wynonna was currently on vacation with Doc.

Waverly sent off a message to Wynonna that read “I miss you too, Wy. Hope you and Doc are having the best time. Can’t wait to see you when you get back.”

Before Waverly had the chance to open Nicole’s message. She psyched herself up. Just seeing her name right now made her heart hurt.

Nicole : Hey Waves! Was hoping we could hang out today, what’d ya say? ☺️

Any other day, the brunette would have jumped at the chance to spend the day with her best friend. Today? Today she knew she couldn’t, at least not without crying.

Waverly : Hey Nic. I’m not feeling too good today, I’ve been throwing up and I’ve got a monster headache. Rain check?

She sent off her reply and not even a minute later she received a response from the redhead.

Nicole : Aww Waves, want me to come over? I wanna make sure you’re okay. 🥰

This was Nicole all over. She was always looking out for her best friend and wanting to take care of her.

Any other time, Waverly would have said yes. But today she couldn’t. How could she? The person who has unknowingly broken her heart trying to fix that broken heart. Waverly knew she couldn’t do that to herself. She couldn’t let Nicole see her like this.

Waverly : No need, I’m good. Gonna spend the day in bed.

Nicole : Oh okay. I hope you feel better soon. Text me if you need anything ok? I got you.

Waverly : Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.

Nicole : ❤️

That heart. Oh how ironic it was.

...

Waverly had gotten herself under the covers and several bonus blankets. She opened up her laptop and loaded up Netflix to watch ‘One Day At A Time’. That show always brought her joy, she hoped it would help mend her heart too.

She grabbed a pillow and hugged it tight to her chest as she started an episode. She needed a hug right now. The person who she’d usually need a hug from was Nicole and because the redhead was unknowingly the cause of all this pain, the brunette’s heart broke a little more at the thought.

Waverly was determined to bring herself out of this darkness. She was Waverly. She was this ball of sunshine and was always smiling, that’s why the people of Purgatory loved her so much. If only they could see her on her bad days.

...

She was a couple episodes in before she was interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing.

She paused her show before picking up the phone to see who was calling.

It was Nicole.

Waverly had managed to forget about her momentarily but seeing her face pop up on the screen alongside her name brought all the heartbreak back.

She knew she had to answer the call because it wasn’t like her to ignore the redheads calls. So she psyched herself up to be all cheery, this was usually done with ease but the way she was feeling made it seem like a chore.

She answered the call and brought the phone up to her ear.

“Hello” Waverly said it a very convincing joyful voice.

“Hey. Just wanted to make sure you’re ok.” Nicole shot back with the same enthusiasm.

“Yeah, I’m ok. I stopped throwing up, so that’s good I guess. Headaches still there so I’ll probably try sleep it off when we end this call” she wanted to end this conversation as quick as possible. She couldn’t bare to hear Nicole’s voice right now. It hurt too much. She knew she was being pathetic and that she would get over it but today she was not over it and just wanted a day to her own thoughts.

“I’m glad you stopped throwing up, I know it always wipes the energy out of you. Um, I guess I’ll just go now I don’t wanna keep you from your beauty sleep.” She said with a smirk evident.

“Haha, yeah um I’ll text you some time this week. Bye”

“Cool, awesome. Bye, love you”

Nicole ended the call and Waverly was just proud that she got through it without a hint of any tears.

Her heartbreak was too raw right now. The words “love you” hurt, god did they hurt so much right now. Instead of her getting a feeling of love, she experienced heartbreak. When they’d say “I love you” as friends, it used to just remind Waverly that she was worthy of being loved. Now? It made her feel worthless because it didn’t carry the meaning that she desperately wanted it too.

She blew out a breath, then the waterworks started. It started out slow and then it all came at once. God did she sob as she hugged the pillow to her chest.

Eventually, she cried out all her energy and passed out. At least she could escape the pain of a broken heart for a few hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how was all that? I know my heart hurt, how about you? 
> 
> Anyway, find me on Twitter - @AnchoredWorld


	3. It's Nice To Have A Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After two days of radio silence, Nicole turns up unannounced at the Homestead to see Waverly.
> 
> Nicole’s POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all your comments and kudos, they mean a lot.

It had been two days since Waverly and Nicole had spoken over the phone, or even spoke over text. This was unusal for the pair as they always checked in with each other to see how the other was doing at least once a day. Nicole was beginning to grow a little concerned due to this unusual display of behaviour from Waverly but also figured she hadn't text her because she was too fatigued through being a little sick.

  
Nicole didn't like to see her bestfriend sick. The brunette would tire easy due to her petite frame. Waverly was a caregiver, always has been, but was always reluctant to take care of herself whenever she was sick. She would forget to eat or drink enough fluids, desite preaching this to her loved ones.

  
Nicole knew that Wynonna was still on her trip with Doc and the small brunette didn't have anyone at the Homestead to look after her, so after these two days of radio silence she decided to drop by see if her bestfriend was okay.

  
The newly engaged couple were due to go into the city this afternoon and pick out a ring for Shae but Nicole figured Shae wouldn't mind rescheduling for another day, she knew how close the redhead and brunette were and didn't mind one bit. Nicole knew that Shae would understand her concern, that's what the redhead liked most about her fiance.

  
The redhead pulled out her phone and called Shae.

  
Shae: Hey you!  
Nicole: Hey babe, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind us going to pick out a ring another day. I haven't heard from Waves for a couple days and that's not like her. I'm a little concerned and wanna go check on her to make sure she's okay.  
Shae: Oh Nicole, I really don't mind. We can just go this weekend instead. No worries.  
Nicole: I knew you'd understand babe. Thank you.  
Shae: Honestly, you don't need to thank me.  
Nicole: You're sweet. I best get going, not knowing if she's alright is killing me.  
Shae: Ok, my love. Bye, love you.  
Nicole: Bye.  
...  
Nicole was just pulling up to the Homestead. She had stopped by the store on her way over to get some medicine and ingredients so that she could make Waverly some homemade soup. She didn't know if the brunette had been eating properly so she figured she better grab some essentials to make up some proper food.

  
As she made her way up to the front door, she noticed that all the curtains were drawn. The redhead found that weird because it was the morning and Waverly usually liked the place to be well lit indoors. Nicole quickly shook this off as a one time thing, Waverly was "sick" after all.

  
She knocked on the door of the Homestead.

  
Nothing...

  
Nicole knocked again, a little harder than her first attempt.

  
Nothing again. Just as Nicole was about to pull out her phone, Waverly opened the front door and was met with a concerned looking Nicole.

  
"Oh thank god" Nicole said, relief in her voice. Waverly shot the redhead a confused look. waiting for an explanation as to why she was now stood on the smaller woman's porch.

  
"Oh um, you've been kinda MIA for the past couple days and i was a little worried, so I thought I'd come and see if you were ok" Nicole said shyly. She didn't know why she was shy, she and Waverly couldn't be more comfortable around each other if they tried.

  
"Nicole, you didn't need to come all the way across town. I just figured that since I had a headache and needed rest, I'd just not go on my phone and read a book or watch a show that I've been meaning to catch up on" Waverly said so matter of factly, trying to sound convincing. She of course wasn't even ill to start with and felt a tiny bit guilty about lying.

  
"Ohhh, that explains things. Now I just feel dumb for getting all worried for no reason" the redhead said whilst throwing her hands up.

  
"You're not dumb Nicole, it's sweet that you thought to check up on me" Waverly said softly. Over the past couple of days she'd managed to stop getting upset over the engagement, she'd finally come to terms with it the best she could. She did like that Nicole cared about her wellbeing, she thought she should be at least happy that she had a friend that cared about her so much.

  
"I was supposed to go ring shopping with Shae this afternoon but thought I'd check on you instead, she was so understanding".

  
Waverly was at the point where she could spend time with Nicole without getting upset and instead of sending the redhead on her way back home she figured she'd ask the redhead if she wanted to come in and watch a movie so that her drive wasn't completely wasted.

  
"Since you came all the way out here, how bout we watch a movie or someting. I'd hate to have wasted your time and ruined your plans with Shae" the brunette said with a hint on guilt in her voice.

  
"You didn't ruin my plans, Waves. I wanted to be here. And yes, I'd love to watch a movie with you, it's only been a few days and I'm already having 'Waverly Withdrawals'" Nicole said through a smirk and small laugh.  
"I guess I missed you too" Waverly said playfully. Despite the hurt she'd experienced the past few days, she did also miss being in Nicole's company. She always felt calm and relaxed in the redheads presence. It was one of the many things that she cherished about their friendship.

  
"Anyway, get yourself in here Haught." Waverly said playfully rolling her eyes.

  
...

  
"So, what movie were you thinking we could watch" Nicole enquired whilst Waverly was in the kitchen making some tea for the pair.

  
"I was thinking maybe we could watch a Disney movie, perhaps Frozen" the brunette said rather giddily. Waverly was a huge Disney fan and she had Nicole converted to one too after they spent a day watching Disney movies a few years back. Frozen was one of Waverly's favorites because it reminded her a little of herself and Wynonna's sisterly bond.

  
"Frozen it is then" Nicole said through a small laugh after seeing Waverly's excited face. The brunette's excited face was adorable, her face would always light up when she was happy, safe, excited and all the other positive moods.

  
...

  
They were nearing the end of the movie when Nicole felt her phone vibrate in her jean pocket. She had recieved a text from Shae. It read "Hey babe, how's Waves feeling? When were you thinking about coming over to my apartment tonight?, I'm making your favorite...stir fry!".

  
Nicole had been having such a relaxing afternoon with Waverly that she completly lost track of where the day had gone, it was nearly 6pm.

  
The redhead didn't really feel like going to Shae's tonight, she wanted to stay with Waverly since she had gone two days without her. She guiltily sent her fiance a response back "Hey, Waves is feeling a little better than what she was a few days ago. Is it okay if we have a raincheck on dinner? We're currently watching a movie, I promised I'd stay with Waves this evening since she wasn't feeling 100% just yet." Nicole hated that she lied to Shae about Waverly being a little better when infact she was pretty much back to her regular self but at the same time she really didn't wanna leave yet and she knew that if she told Waverly about the text, she'd send her on her way to Shae's.

  
The redhead looked up from her phone to find Waverly's eyes still glued to the screen, she found it cute how much the brunette adored Disney movies in general. She always looked so angelic and childlike, in the least patronizing way.

  
She was brought out of her daze by the vibration of her phone, it was Shae.

  
"Oh babe, that's fine. Just means I have extra stir fry for me 😜”

  
"You're the best Shae, I'll text you tomorrow okay? I'll make it up to you, I promise" she wasn't lying, she would make it up to her tomorrow.

  
"I look forward to it babe" Shae replied almost instantly.

  
Nicole just read the message and stuffed her phone back into her jean pocket.

  
Just as Nicole looked back at the tv screen, the credits rolled.

  
"Ahh I love Frozen so much" Waverly said through a comforting sigh as she looked over at the redhead. "Me too" the redhead replied as she looked over at the smaller woman on the other end of the couch.

  
"Let's put another movie on" Nicole said.

  
"Don't you have to go to Shae's apartment tonight? Not that I'm trying to get rif of you" the brunette said all flustered. "Oh no, Shae said it was fine to stay here since I'd been super worried about you these past couple days".

  
"Okay, well since we're gonna watch another movie, how bout I make us some food first? I can make your favorite, stir-fry!" Waverly said in a voice that rose in pitch towards the end of her sentence.

  
"I would do anything for a good stir-fry right now, you're too good to me Earp" Nicole said as she lay her head back against the couch whilst she watched Waverly make her way into the kitchen.

  
"It's just stir-fry Nicole" Waverly said, moving her hand in a way that said "it's nothing".

  
"It's not just nothing with you" Nicole mumbled to herself under her breath. "Why did I just say that" the redhead thought to no one but herself. She quickly shook her head and headed for the kitchen to help the smaller woman with dinner.

  
It all felt rather domestic to Nicole, it was a weird change of atmosphere between the two and she couldn't quite come up with an explanation as to why it felt like that. The redhead looked over at the other woman who was currently making her way around the kitchen. She quickly snapped out of whatever situation she was in and made her way over to the top cupboard, where the smaller woman was currently struggling to reach a pan.

  
The brunette smiled up at the redhead in thanks and went about the task at hand. Nicole ended up sitting at the kitchen island as she watched Waverly cook up her favorite meal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Waverly seems to be over her period of hurt. 
> 
> What seems to be going on with Nicole?
> 
> Follow my twitter for updates on posting and other general things - @AnchoredWorld


	4. Make Me Feel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wynonna and Doc are home from their vacation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Waverly seems to be doing fine but what is going on with Nicole?

After Waverly had made a stir-fry for them both, they'd decided to indulged themself in another movie. The pair had decided to watch _Coco_, they figured they may as well continue with the Disney theme.

The two were halfway through the movie when Waverly had felt Nicole's head drop against her shoulder. The redhead had drifted off, she was tired after such an early start that day. The brunette looked down at her friend and smiled to herself. Even though Nicole was set to marry another woman, it didn't mean that the pair would have to stop hanging around with one another or stop being affectionate towards the other. This did help ease Waverly's hurt. She'd come to the conclusion that maybe her reaction to the news of the engagement was somewhat an overraction. The brunette always had a fear of the people she loved walking out on her and Nicole getting married falls into that fear because she may not see her best friend as often as she'd need.A faint smile crept onto her face as she was falling into deeper thoughts.

Despite the initial falling apart a few days ago over the news of the redhead's engagement, Waverly was proud of herself for getting over it and coming to terms with it so quick. Then again she'd been used to having to be strong for so long, since the early days of her childhood. As a youngster, she always had to pretty much take care of herself. She had to develop her maturity quicker than most kids her age, it was both a blessing and a curse. She was particularly grateful for that skill these past few days because it revolved around something that was a big part of her life. Her _best friend_, her _soulmate_, her _Nicole_. Of course she didn't own Nicole and they would never be soulmates in a romantic way but she did own a piece of the redhead's heart, Nicole had told her so when they'd agreed to be just friends way back when. The brunette closed her eyes smiled to herself in praise.

...

It was coming up to the end of the movie and Nicole was still asleep. Waverly had moved Nicole's head into her lap sometime ago to prevent the redhead from getting a stiff neck. She'd be grateful for the gesture when she would finally come to.

The time was currently 8:30pm. The brunette didn't know if she should wake Nicole but almost instantly decided against it as soon as the thought had entered her head, the redhead had seemed to need the nap.

Waverly had started to absentmindedly stroke the redhead's hair out of her face, the brunette quickly scolded herself for carrying out such an intimate action.

The brunette decided to check her phone after not picking it up since Nicole's unannounced arrival.

*1 New Message* sent 7:50pm.

The message was from Wynonna and read "Hey babygirl, just landed. Just need to collect our luggage then get a taxi home. We should be at the Homestead before 9pm. Can't wait to see you. We both missed you!"

Waverly had completely forgotten that Wynonna was due back tonight but it was such a welcomed surprise. Just as she was about to reply to her sister, the smaller woman saw headlights shine through the side window.

She then heard car doors slamming before hearing commotion on the porch. Trust Wynonna to make a lot of noise she thought to herself.

Wynonna had managed to open the front door and was making her way in, Doc in toe carrying their luggage. He'd do anything to make his girlfriend's life easier, he practically worshipped the ground in which she walked. Waverly had always envied her sisters relationship with Doc, she always hoped for a love like theirs. It was simple and after a youth of complicated, she needed simple.

Before Wynonna had the chance to loudly declare her arrival, Waverly held her index finger to the lips signalling to be quiet before pointing to the sleeping woman in her lap. The older woman made her way over to her sister and gave her a huge hug, or at least the best she could do without disturbing a sleeping Nicole. Waverly sank into the hug, oh did she need a hug from her sister right now. "Missed you, Sis" Waverly said whispering into Wynonna's ear. "Missed you too, babygirl".

Wynonna was the first to pull away from the embrace, she gave her sister a kiss on the crown of her head before retracting fully. As Doc made his way into the room, he nodded his head in acknowledgement of Waverly before saying "Nice to see you, little Earp". Doc had started calling Waverly little Earp when he had his first encounter with the two sisters, alas the nickname stuck.

Doc had taken it upon himself to take both his and Wynonna's luggage unstairs to their room. It was one less thing for his lady to even begin to worry about doing.

The older brunette had drifted into the kitchen and helped herself to some leftover stir-fry from earlier. Meanwhile, the young brunette looked down at Nicole to make sure she was still peacefully sleeping. A soft smile made it's way onto her face as she confirmed that infact the redhead was still sound asleep in her lap.

When Wynonna had finished playing scavenger in the kitchen with the stir-fry, she made her way over to where Waverly was sat on the couch and plopped herself down right beside her sister. The sudden dip in the couch had caused Nicole to shift in her sleep. "Sorry" whispered Wynonna to Waverly. Thankfully, Nicole hadn't been disturbed too much as she settled again.

"How have things been with you since I was gone then, babygirl?" Wynonna questioned.

"Everything has been totally fine, I did miss you though."

"I missed you too. Three whole weeks without my little sister was too long if you ask me" the older brunette said through a yawn.

"You should get yourself upstairs to bed. You look too tired to function". Waverly said looking over at her sister.

"You're right. I need me some beauty sleep, it ain't easy looking this good" Wynonna said whilst framing her face. As Wynonna made her way to stand up she kissed the younger brunette on the top of the head and said "see you tomorrow" before making her way up the stairs to the room that herself and Doc shared.

...

It had been a few minutes since Wynonna had retired to her bed and Waverly was currently just scrolling through her twitter absentmindedly. Suddenly she felt Nicole start to shift so she looked down to see the redhead's eyelids fluttering open.

"Hey sleepyhead" said the brunette in a singsong.

"Oh wow, how long was I out for? What time is it?" Nicole said, her voice still filled with sleep as she was still bringing herself out of sleep.

"Hmm, an hour and a bit and it's just gone 9".

"Sorry I fell asleep, I guess I was more tired than I originally thought" the redhead said guiltily whilst looking up at the brunette's face above.

"Don't worry about it" Waverly said whilst smiling down at woman in her lap. The redhead shot a dopey grin back before saying "I should uh, I should be going" as she lifted her head simultaniously.

"Ok. Thanks for coming over, I appreciate how much you cared to check on me" Waverly replied through a smile.

"Well I do care about you, Waves" Nicole replied in a tone that was both affectionate and serious before she stood up to make her way into the hall, Waverly following closely behind.

Nicole was suddenly overcome with an emotion that felt unfamiliar but she could't quite put her finger on it right now. She snapped herself out of her daze before she opened her arms to embrace the smaller woman in front of her to say goodbye. They fit together like a puzzle when they hugged, both the perfect height. The redhead melted into a puddle whilst she held Waverly close. "I must have missed her these past days more than I thought" Nicole thought to herself. Yeah, that was why she'd melted in the smaller woman's arms.

Waverly was the first to pull out of the hug, much to the redhead's dissapointment. Of course Nicole hid that dissapointment very well. "Wasn't expecting to be that sad about leaving" she thought to herself.

Nicole opened the front door and was immediately hit by the low temperatures outside.

"Drive safe" Waverly said as Nicole made her way down the porch steps towards her car.

"I always do, Waves" Nicole replied whilst shooting the brunette a smile.

Nicole stepped into her car and turned the ignition before turning on the heater, damn was it cold. The redhead looked up at the Homestead front door and saw the small woman still stood with the door open, arms hugged around herself to fight off the cold. As they caught each others eye, the redhead raised her hand and waved at the other woman before shifting the car into reverse.

Waverly waved goodbye from the door as she watched the other woman leave before closing the door and going back inside when the redhead was out of sight.

As Nicole made her way down the long driveway towards the road, she was left confused by the evenings events. Something felt weird, not weird but oddly welcomed. This left the redhead feeling _something_ as she made the lonely drive back to her house on the other side of town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for lovely comments that you have been leaving, I appreciate it ☺️
> 
> I’m gonna warn you that the next few chapters are gonna seem so random and I hope you stick with the story 😬
> 
> Follow my twitter for updates regarding this story and future fics : @AnchoredWorld


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